Arduino Pro Mini FV-1 Programmer Setup

1. Introduction

Welcome to the YGN Effects Framework documentation! An Arduino Pro Mini 3.3 V is a simple, low-cost way to program the EEPROM on an FV-1 target board from SpinASM for VS Code in VS Code.

It runs the same programming protocol as the dedicated FV-1 EEPROM Programmer, but replaces the custom board with an Arduino Pro Mini and a separate USB-to-serial adapter. Once it is set up, the extension can detect the programmer, write compiled programs to the target EEPROM and read them back to verify every upload.

This guide supports the 3.3 V 8 MHz ATmega328P Arduino Pro Mini only, as the FV-1 programming connection is a 3.3 V system.

2. Required Hardware

Gather the following before you start. The USB-to-serial adapter is required because a Pro Mini has no built-in USB interface.

3. Wiring and Power

The Pro Mini has two jobs in this guide, and each job has its own wiring and power source. Flash its firmware with the USB-to-serial adapter first. Then disconnect the adapter’s 3.3 V power connection and let the powered target board supply the Pro Mini while you program its EEPROM.

Note: The Pro Mini, target programming header and EEPROM are 3.3 V only. Check the adapter’s logic-voltage setting before you connect it. Do not use its 5 V output or connect 5 V serial logic to any part of this setup.

Wiring for firmware flashing

1. Set the USB-to-serial adapter to 3.3 V. This is usually a small jumper that you move to the 3.3 V pins, or a switch that you set to 3.3 V.

   

2. Connect the adapter to the Pro Mini as follows:

   USB-to-serial adapter	Arduino Pro Mini
   3.3 V	VCC
   GND	GND
   TX	RXI
   RX	TXO
   DTR	GRN / RESET

3. Leave the FV-1 target board disconnected while you flash the Pro Mini firmware.

Wiring for EEPROM programming

1. Disconnect the adapter’s 3.3 V and RESET wires from the Pro Mini after flashing. Keep its GND, TX and RX connections in place so VS Code can communicate with the programmer.

2. Connect the Pro Mini to the FV-1 target board’s dedicated programming header by signal name:

   Arduino Pro Mini	Target programming header
   A4 / SDA	SDA
   A5 / SCL	SCL
   D9	FV-1 RESET
   VCC	3.3 V
   GND	GND

3. Power on the target board. It now supplies the Pro Mini and the EEPROM.

Note: Do not let the USB-to-serial adapter and target board power the Pro Mini at the same time. Disconnect the adapter’s 3.3 V wire before you power the target board.

4. Flash the Programmer Firmware

With the adapter wired to the Pro Mini and set to 3.3 V, you can load the pre-built programmer firmware. This is a one-time setup step.

Install avrdude

Only avrdude is required to flash the firmware.

Locate the firmware

The pre-built firmware is provided in the FV-1 programmer repository at: firmware/_output/pro-mini-firmware.hex

Open a terminal in that _output folder before you run the flash command.

Run the flash command

1. Connect the USB-to-serial adapter to the Pro Mini as shown in the previous section.
2. Plug the adapter into your computer.
3. Identify its serial port. It is commonly a COM port on Windows, /dev/cu.* on macOS or /dev/ttyUSB* on Linux.
4. Run the command below, replacing <serial-port> with that port name:

avrdude -p atmega328p -c arduino -P <serial-port> -b 57600 \
  -U flash:w:./pro-mini-firmware.hex:i

A successful run will output:

Reading 5428 bytes for flash from input file pro-mini-firmware.hex
Writing 5428 bytes to flash
Writing | ################################################## | 100% 2.66 s
Reading | ################################################## | 100% 2.31 s
5428 bytes of flash verified

Avrdude done.  Thank you.

Tip: If avrdude cannot open the serial port on Linux, your user account may need access to the dialout group or an appropriate udev rule. Check your distribution’s documentation for the right approach.

5. Tests

With the firmware flashed, you are ready to test the complete programming path from SpinASM for VS Code to the target EEPROM.

Connect the programmer to the target board

1. Disconnect the USB-to-serial adapter’s 3.3 V wire from the Pro Mini if it is still connected from flashing.
2. Connect the Pro Mini to the target board’s programming header: A4 to SDA, A5 to SCL, D9 to FV-1 RESET, VCC to 3.3 V and GND to GND.
3. Connect the adapter’s GND, TX and RX wires to the Pro Mini, then plug the adapter into your computer.
4. Power on the FV-1 target board. It supplies the Pro Mini and the target EEPROM.

Note: Do not use the adapter’s 3.3 V output while the target board is powered. The adapter provides serial communication only during this test.

Run auto-detect and check the hardware

1. Open your FV-1 project in VS Code with SpinASM for VS Code installed.
2. Open the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P or Cmd+Shift+P) and run SpinASM: Auto-Detect Programmer.
3. Confirm that the extension finds the USB-to-serial adapter and selects its serial port.
4. Run SpinASM: Check Hardware Connection to confirm the compiler, programmer and target EEPROM can communicate.

Compile, upload and verify a program

1. Open a sample .spn program in your FV-1 project.
2. Run SpinASM: Compile & Upload current program from the Command Palette or editor title.
3. Wait for the upload to complete. SpinASM reads the EEPROM back automatically and compares it with the compiled program.
4. Confirm that VS Code reports a successful upload and verification.

Tip: If the test fails, check that the target board is powered, the adapter’s 3.3 V wire is disconnected and every SDA, SCL, reset and ground connection is firm.

6. Troubleshooting

avrdude cannot flash the Pro Mini

avrdude reports a timeout, sync error or cannot open the serial port

Check that you selected the adapter’s serial port and that it is not open in another application. Confirm that the adapter is set to 3.3 V and that TX connects to RXI, RX connects to TXO, GND connects to GND and DTR connects to GRN / RESET. If your adapter does not reset the Pro Mini automatically, press the reset button immediately before you run the command.

SpinASM cannot detect the programmer

SpinASM: Auto-Detect Programmer does not find the Pro Mini

Confirm that the target board is powered. During normal programming, the adapter’s 3.3 V wire must be disconnected but its GND, TX and RX wires must remain connected. Check the TX and RX crossover connections, then run SpinASM: Select Serial Port… to choose the adapter manually. On Linux, your user account may need access to the dialout group or an appropriate udev rule.

Hardware check cannot reach the EEPROM

SpinASM: Check Hardware Connection reports that the EEPROM is unavailable

Check the target board’s power first. Then inspect every connection between the Pro Mini and programming header: A4 to SDA, A5 to SCL, D9 to FV-1 RESET, VCC to 3.3 V and GND to GND. Keep the wires short and make sure no 5 V supply or logic level reaches the target board.

Upload or read-back verification fails

SpinASM uploads a program but reports a verification mismatch

Power-cycle the target board, then check the SDA, SCL and ground wires for loose connections. Run SpinASM: Check Hardware Connection again before retrying the upload. A successful upload is always read back and compared with the compiled program, so do not treat a verification mismatch as a successful programming result.